Welcome to the Topcoder Data Science Homepage!

This is your one stop shop for all things related to the Data Science track on Topcoder. This primarily includes everything surrounding Marathon Matches (MMs) and other Data Science challenges found on our Challenge Listings page. On this page you will find a getting started guide, helpful tips and articles, as well as a list of tools that may help you in competitions.

Challenge Series Spotlight

We know you have always wanted to learn how Quantum Computing works and how to use it to solve real world problems. Well, now that Topcoder is partnering with Fujitsu and their latest system, Digital Annealer (DA), you can! We will be launching three learning challenges and one Marathon Match all with cash prizes. Get paid to learn Quantum Computing!

Welcome to the Test for Success Challenge Series! Each week we will be launching a challenge with around 110 regression test cases, which need to be executed on Android, iOS, and Web Browsers within 24 hours.

You read that correctly, there is no coding or designing needed in these challenges. All you need in order to qualify is to have the correct device and have good attention to detail when reading the challenge spec.

Tips and Quotes

Check out what some of our members have to say about their experiences on Topcoder!

I got smarter, more confident and more open to new people, challenges and opportunities. I’ve lost count to ventures I’ve embarked on since joining Topcoder, and while not all of them were as ambitious as moving to another country, they’ve all been life-enriching or at least plain fun.

Topcoder allowed me to experiment. At first I rediscovered programming after being completely bored with it. Then, I understood that I love solving tough problems and I actually don’t really like coding — it’s just a tool that I’m obliged to use. It allowed me to finally drop out of my studies, yet be considered an expert in the area in which I studied. It also showed me my weak and strong points and I can apply this to other areas of my life. It allowed me to better understand myself.

As with any programming contests, Topcoder develops algorithmic thinking and ability to understand what exactly your code is doing. This sometimes helps in real-life coding. As for marathons specifically, I think they also promote problem solving skills and thinking out-of-the-box – after all, there is usually no definite solution. Again, those skills sometimes help at work when you’re, well, solving problems.

As I only need to write small utilities programs in my regular job, Topcoder challenges are a great way to keep my programming skills in good shape. Besides that, I have learned a lot of things competing in marathon matches (e.g. optimization, machine learning, and image processing techniques).

Marathon Match Tips

Marathon Matches (MMs) have a long history back to 2005 when only SRMs existed on Topcoder. It came as an idea from one of our first community members Running Wild to have a ‘week long contests’ for algorithm problems.

Visualizers

One of the most important tools in a Marathon Match is a visualizer – a program which allows the participant to run their solution locally and to get a visual representation of its performance (without the visual component it’s called a local tester).